Higher ratedRanked #3 in Best Compact Induction Cooktops
Hamilton Beach 34104 Portable Single Induction Cooktop4.4
1 sourceall derived$79.95Hamilton Beach's 34104 finished second to the Duxtop 9100MC in Serious Eats' test of 17 portable induction cooktops, and it wins outright on the one job the Duxtop struggles with. It was the fastest and most efficient burner in the group at heating oil, comfortably clearing the 375°F frying mark on full power. The cost is a slower boil — 20.5 minutes for a gallon — and a touch panel sensitive enough that the tester kept triggering a 30-second Boost function she could not find a use for.
Strengths
- — Heated frying oil faster and more efficiently than any other burner in Serious Eats' 17-model test, and could push past the 375°F frying target on full heat
- — Strong temperature stability across long cooks, which Serious Eats called out specifically alongside its ease of use
- — 8.5-inch coil and a stated 4- to 10-inch pan range, the widest cookware tolerance among the affordable picks in that test
Watch-outs
- — Took 20.5 minutes to boil a gallon of water, four and a half minutes slower than the Duxtop 9100MC in the same test
- — Touch controls are oversensitive — Serious Eats hit the Boost button by accident more than once during testing
- — The Boost function itself is close to useless: it runs maximum power for exactly 30 seconds, a duration the tester could not find a purpose for
